Torture allegations widen to include Afghanistan and other Iraqi facilities

The scandal of the U.S. military's abuse of Iraqi prisoners threatened to widen Tuesday as lawmakers emerged from a closed-door briefing with Pentagon (news - web sites) officials said similar abuses — though "small in number" — may also have occurred at other Iraqi facilities and in Afghanistan (news - web sites).

Outraged by the sexual humiliation and abuses of Iraqis by U.S. military personnel at Abu Ghraib prison, senators called for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to explain the situation in an open hearing as soon as possible.

"There were some incidents in Afghanistan," said Sen. John Warner, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (news - web sites), after the panel's closed briefing with Pentagon officials. "We did not get the full details but were left with the impression that they were relatively isolated and certainly small in number." (Link)